A systematic review of telemedicine services for residents in long term care facilities

We conducted a systematic review of the literature on telemedicine use in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) and assessed the quality of the published evidence. A database search identified 22 papers which met the inclusion criteria. The quality of the studies was assessed and if they contained economic data, they were rated according to standard criteria. The clinical services provided by telemedicine included allied health (n = 5), dermatology (3), general practice (4), neurology (2), geriatrics (1), psychiatry (4) and multiple specialities (3). Most studies (17) employed real-time telemedicine using videoconferencing. The remaining five used store and forward telemedicine. The papers focused on economics (3), feasibility (9), stakeholder satisfaction (12), reliability (5) and service implementation (2). Overall, the quality of evidence for telemedicine in LTCFs was low. There was only one small randomised controlled trial (RCT). Most studies were observational and qualitative, and focused on utilisation. They were mainly based on surveys and interviews of stakeholders. A few studies evaluated the cost associated with implementing telemedicine services in LTCFs. The present review shows that there is evidence for feasibility and stakeholder satisfaction in using telemedicine in LTCFs in a number of clinical specialities.

A novel method for analysing lighting variance

Robust descriptor matching across varying lighting conditions is important for vision-based robotics. We present a novel strategy for quantifying the lighting variance of descriptors. The strategy works by utilising recovered low dimensional mappings from Isomap and our measure of the lighting variance of each of these mappings. The resultant metric allows different descriptors to be compared given a dataset and a set of keypoints. We demonstrate that the SIFT descriptor typically has lower lighting variance than other descriptors, although the result depends on semantic class and lighting conditions.

Self-organization processes in field-invasion team sports

In nature, the interactions between agents in a complex system (fish schools; colonies of ants) are governed by information that is locally created. Each agent self-organizes (adjusts) its behaviour, not through a central command centre, but based on variables that emerge from the interactions with other system agents in the neighbourhood. Self-organization has been proposed as a mechanism to explain the tendencies for individual performers to interact with each other in field-invasion sports teams, displaying functional co-adaptive behaviours, without the need for central control. The relevance of self-organization as a mechanism that explains pattern-forming dynamics within attacker-defender interactions in field-invasion sports has been sustained in the literature. Nonetheless, other levels of interpersonal coordination, such as intra-team interactions, still raise important questions, particularly with reference to the role of leadership or match strategies that have been prescribed in advance by a coach. The existence of key properties of complex systems, such as system degeneracy, nonlinearity or contextual dependency, suggests that self-organization is a functional mechanism to explain the emergence of interpersonal coordination tendencies within intra-team interactions. In this opinion article we propose how leadership may act as a key constraint on the emergent, self-organizational tendencies of performers in field-invasion sports.

Performance analysis in team sports : advances from an ecological dynamics approach

Capacity to produce data for performance analysis in sports has been enhanced in the last decade with substantial technological advances. However, current performance analysis methods have been criticised for the lack of a viable theoretical framework to assist on the development of fundamental principles that regulate performance achievement. Our aim in this paper is to discuss ecological dynamics as an explanatory framework for improving analysis and understanding of competitive performance behaviours. We argue that integration of ideas from ecological dynamics into previous approaches to performance analysis advances current understanding of how sport performance emerges from continuous interactions between individual players and teams. Exemplar data from previous studies in association football are presented to illustrate this novel perspective on performance analysis. Limitations of current ecological dynamics research and challenges for future research are discussed in order to improve the meaningfulness of information presented to coaches and managers.

Review of community facilities in Australian retirement villages : a content analysis

Aim Facilities in retirement villages form a supportive environment for older residents. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the provision of these facilities in retirement villages, which are regarded as a viable accommodation option for the ever-increasing ageing population in Australia. Method A content analysis of 124 retirement villages operated by 22 developers in Queensland and South Australia was conducted for the research purpose. Results The most widely provided facilities are community centres, libraries, barbeque facilities, hairdressers/salons and billiards/snooker/pool tables. Commercial operators provide more facilities than not-for-profit organisations and larger retirement villages normally have more facilities due to the economics of scale involved. Conclusions The results of the study provide a useful reference for providing facilities within retirement villages that may support the quality lifestyles for the older residents.

Where are all the female participants in sports and exercise medicine research?

The aim of this study is to estimate the ratio of male and female participants in Sports and Exercise Medicine research. Original research articles published in three major Sports and Exercise Medicine journals (Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise, British Journal of Sports Medicine and American Journal of Sports Medicine) over a three year period were examined. Each article was screened to determine the following: total number of participants, the number of female participants and the number of male participants. The percentage of females and males per article in each of the journals was also calculated. Cross tabulations and Chi square analysis were used to compare the gender representation of participants within each of the journals. Data were extracted from 1, 382 articles involving a total of 6, 076, 705 participants. 2, 366, 998 (39%) participants were female and 3, 709, 707 (61%) male. The average percentage of female participants per article across the journals ranged from 35-37%. Females were significantly under-represented across all of the journals (X2 =23566, df=2, p<0.00001). There were no significant differences between the three journals. In conclusion, Sports and Exercise Medicine practitioners should be cognisant of sexual dimorphism and gender disparity in the current literature.

Sports dietitians Australia position statement : sports nutrition for the adolescent athlete

It is the position of Sports Dietitians Australia (SDA) that adolescent athletes have unique nutritional requirements as a consequence of undertaking daily training and competition in addition to the demands of growth and development. As such, SDA established an expert multidisciplinary panel to undertake an independent review of the relevant scientific evidence and consulted with its professional members to develop sports nutrition recommendations for active and competitive adolescent athletes. The position of SDA is that dietary education and recommendations for these adolescent athletes should reinforce eating for long term health. More specifically, the adolescent athlete should be encouraged to moderate eating patterns to reflect daily exercise demands and provide a regular spread of high quality carbohydrate and protein sources over the day, especially in the period immediately after training. SDA recommends that consideration also be given to the dietary calcium, Vitamin D and iron intake of adolescent athletes due to the elevated risk of deficiency of these nutrients. In order to maintain optimal hydration, adolescent athletes should have access to fluids that are clean, cool and supplied in sufficient quantities before, during and after participation in sport. Finally, it is the position of SDA that use of nutrient needs should be met by core foods rather than supplements, as the recommendation of dietary supplements to developing athletes over-emphasises their ability to manipulate performance in comparison to other training and dietary strategies.

Assessing physical activity during youth sport : the observational system for recording activity in children : youth sports (OSRAC:YS)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity and inter-rater reliability of the Observation System for Recording Activity in Children: Youth Sports (OSRAC:YS). Children (N=29) participating in a parks and recreation soccer program were observed during regularly scheduled practices. Physical activity (PA) intensity and contextual factors were recorded by momentary time-sampling procedures (10-sec observe, 20-sec record). Two observers simultaneously observed and recorded children's PA intensity, practice context, social context, coach behavior, and coach proximity. Inter-rater reliability was based on agreement (Kappa) between the observer's coding for each category, and the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) for percent of time spent in MVPA. Validity was assessed by calculating the correlation between OSRAC:YS estimated and objectively measured MVPA. Kappa statistics for each category demonstrated substantial to almost perfect inter-observer agreement (Κappa = 0.67 to 0.93). The ICC for percent time in MVPA was 0.76 (95% C.I. = 0.49 - 0.90). A significant correlation (r = 0.73) was observed for MVPA recorded by observation and MVPA measured via accelerometry. The results indicate the OSRAC:YS is a reliable and valid tool for measuring children's PA and contextual factors during a youth soccer practice.

Sports participation and health-related behaviors among US youth

Objective To examine the relationship between sports participation and health-related behaviors among high school students. Design Cross-sectional design using data from the 1997 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Participants A nationally representative sample of 14221 US high school students. Main Outcome Measures Prevalence of sports participation among males and females from 3 ethnic groups and its associations with other health behaviors, including diet, tobacco use, alcohol and illegal drug use, sexual activity, violence, and weight loss practices. Results Approximately 70% of male students and 53% of female students reported participating on 1 or more spores teams in school and/or nonschool settings; rates varied substantially by age, sex, and ethnicity. Male sports participants were more likely than male nonparticipants to report fruit and vegetable consumption on the previous day and less likely to report cigarette smelting, cocaine and other illegal drug use, and trying to lose weight. Compared with female nonparticipants, female sports participants were more likely to report consumption of vegetables on the previous day and less likely to report having sexual intercourse in the past 3 months. Among white males and females, several other beneficial health behaviors were associated with sports participation. A few associations with. negative health behaviors were observed in African American and Hispanic subgroups. Conclusion Sports participation is highly prevalent among US high school students, and is associated with numerous positive health behaviors and few negative health behaviors.

A time series analysis of presentations to Queensland health facilities for alcohol-related conditions, following the increase in 'alcopops' tax

Objective: In response to concerns about the health consequences of high-risk drinking by young people, the Australian Government increased the tax on pre-mixed alcoholic beverages ('alcopops') favoured by this demographic. We measured changes in admissions for alcohol-related harm to health throughout Queensland, before and after the tax increase in April 2008. Methods: We used data from the Queensland Trauma Register, Hospitals Admitted Patients Data Collection, and the Emergency Department Information System to calculate alcohol-related admission rates per 100,000 people, for 15 - 29 year-olds. We analysed data over 3 years (April 2006 - April 2009), using interrupted time-series analyses. This covered 2 years before, and 1 year after, the tax increase. We investigated both mental and behavioural consequences (via F10 codes), and intentional/unintentional injuries (S and T codes). Results: We fitted an auto-regressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model, to test for any changes following the increased tax. There was no decrease in alcohol-related admissions in 15 - 29 year-olds. We found similar results for males and females, as well as definitions of alcohol-related harms that were narrow (F10 codes only) and broad (F10, S and T codes). Conclusions: The increased tax on 'alcopops' was not associated with any reduction in hospital admissions for alcohol-related harms in Queensland 15 - 29 year-olds.